• Hamlet, William Sakespeare

• Introduction
• Short Summary
• Detailed Summary
• Summary Act I-Scene-I
• Summary Act I, Scene II
• Summary Act I, Scene III
• Summary Act I, Scene IV
• Summary Act I, Scene V
• Summary Act II, Scene I
• Summary Act II, Scene II
• Summary Act III, Scene I
• Summary Act III, Scene II
• Summary Act III, Scene III
• Summary Act III, Scene IV
• Summary Act IV, Scene I-II
• Summary Act IV, Scene III-IV
• Summary Act IV, Scene V
• Summary Act IV, Scene VI-VII
• Summary Act V, Scene I
• Summary Act V, Scene II
• Character of Hamlet
• Character of Ophelia
• Themes & Topics
• University Questions & Answers
• Top 10 Quotes from Hamlet
• Best Quotes from Hamlet

Hamlet Act III Scene II Detailed Summary of Hamlet, a play by William Shakespeare

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Elsinore, a hall in the palace. Here Hamlet has been instructing the players that their speech and acts should be natural than borrowed. The players exit and enter Polonius with Rosencrantz and Guildestern. They inform Hamlet that the king and queen shall attend the play that night Hamlet sends them all after the players to ask them to haste and be ready for the play. Then Hamlet calls Horatio and discusses with him. Hamlet says that all men are slaves to passions: "Give me that man That is not passion's slave". Hamlet then appoints Horatio to observe his uncle during the play because :

"There is a play to-night before the King.
One scene of it comes near the circumstance,
Which I have told thee, of my father's death."

Hamlet says that it is the only way to know if the ghost were true or done devil in it.

He tells Horatio :

"For I mine eyes will rivet to his face,
And after we will both our judgments join
In censure of his seeming".

Then enter the king, queen, Polonius and other lords with guard. The queen asks Hamlet to sit by her but he refuses and asks Ophelia if he can keep his head on her lap. She refuses politely. The characters of the play enter and play begins with the entry of a king and a queen. Both are showing signs of love and then the queen poisons the king with the help of a another man. He makes a display of love and the queen falls for him. The man goes away. The dead body of the king is carried away. Then the man and queen pretend sorrow over the loss of the king.

Ophelia is unhappy at the play. She questions Hamlet what he meant by that. But the play continues. Enter the king and queen. The queen in the play is shown promising the king of her loyalty and of what ruin her life would be if the king is no more in his life. Then the episode of poisoning the king appears on the scene.

The king of Denmark leaves the play in distemper along all else except Hamlet and Horatio. Both agree that the king is guilty of poisoning. Then enters Guildenstern with a message from the queen asking Hamlet to meet her before he goes to sleep. Guildenstern asks Hamlet the cause of his unhappiness. And Hamlet gets annoyed: "do you think I am easier to be play'd on than a pipe? " Polonius comes with the message from queen that she wants to speak to him